The Accidental First Date
by heatherkw
Summary: Camille and Linus plot to set up Kirsten and Cameron on a date. To celebrate the most recent stitch case, they want to go out to celebrate at an Italian restaurant downtown. At the last minute, they both cancel, leaving Cameron and Kirsten at the restaurant without them.


A/N: Sequel to People Watching. Or, as I like to call it, the "Camille's Foolproof Plan" series ;)

* * *

They had just wrapped up another case. Cameron was waiting at his desk for Kirsten to finish changing. He noticed the other pair, Camille and Linus, out of the corner of his eye. They were whispering very closely, which could only mean they were up to no good.

Kirsten waltzed straight for him. "Good to go?," she asked.

"Yeah, of course. After you," he motioned with his hand for her to go first towards the elevator. They were heading to his place for a game of Settlers of Catan (he insisted), then order in a pizza for a movie night. The other pair had given up all pretenses of attending, and flat out told them no earlier.

The other duo rushed into the elevator, before the door had a chance to close. Cameron and Kirsten both exchanged curious looks.

Camille smiled wide at them before speaking. "So, change of plans for tonight. Linus and I just called in a reservation at that Italian place you love Cameron. We're all going out to dinner."

Cameron internally wondered why that involved hushed tones and secrecy earlier.

Kirsten was the first to actually voice her concerns. "Why?," she asked the brunette.

"Uh, because we solved this case in record time and thought it would be nice to celebrate." She rolled her eyes at the blonde, as if that was the most ridiculous question she could ask.

They did in fact solve this case in record time, finding everything from one stitch and Kirsten heard the victim say the killer's name in an earlier memory. They wrapped up early for the day at about 4pm.

The elevator door chimed open. Before anyone could move, Camille linked her arm in Kirsten's and led her away. "Come on, I'm helping you get ready," she announced.

Kirsten groaned in response and pulled out her phone. She texted Cameron, _So what are the odds that they will bail on dinner tonight?_

Cameron and Linus were only a few steps behind the girls, all headed to the parking lot. Cameron pulled his phone out of his pocket, already guessing it was Kirsten before looking at it. He chuckled to himself, responding with, _I think they'll bail. If they do, we can always resume the original plan... Settlers of Catan ;-)_

She rolled her eyes as she read that. She didn't see the appeal of Settlers of Catan, even though they all played it a few times. _Why don't we see how dinner goes first, before resorting to Settlers of Catan. For the record, I think they'll bail too._

"Cameron, you're going to need to pick up Kirsten," Camille declared, not bothering to look back at him as she got into her car and unlocked the passenger's side for Kirsten.

"Wait, why? Shouldn't you be giving her a ride? You will be leaving from the same house," he scoffed.

She leaned out her open window. "Linus is picking me up, because we're staying at his place tonight. So you'll need to pick up Kirsten... Oh! And wear a suit." She turned forward with a mischievous smile on her face.

He simply nodded and got in his car. He quickly texted Kirsten before starting the engine. _Yeah, they're definitely going to bail._

...

Camille was putting the finishing touches on Kirsten, applying a light gloss to her lips.

"I still don't see why we have to get all dressed up," she repeated to Camille.

"Because it's a nice restaurant. And I can't look like this," motioning to her little black dress, "-and have you wearing jeans, now can I?" She placed her free hand on her hip, silently daring Kirsten to argue with her.

The lack of response from Kirsten was the only answer she needed. Camille knew she had made her point, and that she most likely wouldn't bring up the issue again.

Camille gave herself one final look in the mirror, admiring the perfect winged eyeliner and red lips. She wore a fitted little black dress that hugged her body and barely went halfway to her knees, with thin straps that didn't really have any function.

She gave Kirsten a final look over, admiring her work for her as well. She gave Kirsten a smoky eye look with a light pink colored gloss. She had let her borrow a dress, although she couldn't understand how Kirsten had a closet full of clothes and next to no dresses. The dress she had picked out was a deep red color with one shoulder strap and ruching detail that led up to the shoulder strap, and a flowing skirt that landed just above her knees.

The doorbell rang, announcing the arrival of the boys. "Alright, I'll get that. You go find shoes. Do you have black flats?," Camille asked and left the room without waiting for her answer. She grabbed her strappy gold stilettos and matching gold clutch from her room and rushed to answer the front door.

"Yes, I do," she answered to the empty bathroom. Kirsten went in search of her shoes, finding them easily on the floor of her closet. She slipped them on and grabbed her purse for the evening (Camille insisted she bring a clutch instead of her usual messenger bag).

Kirsten walked out in the living room. Cameron looked rather uncomfortable next to the other two. Camille had Linus pushed up against the door frame, clearly paying little attention to anyone else in the room. Kirsten was actually surprised that they were still clothed.

Kirsten cleared her throat, and the pair broke apart, albeit breathing quite heavily. She locked eyes with Cameron, noticing his trademark smile that reached his eyes. She estimated that a sufficient amount of time had passed and he was still staring at her. "What?," she asked, tilting her head in confusion.

He ran his fingers through his hair. "Nothing. It's just you look... stunning."

He was wearing a stylish suit, with a light gray button up shirt. "You too, Girlfriend," she teased.

Camille cleared her throat this time. "Now that you two are done making heart eyes at each other, can we go now?," she asked.

For the first time, Kirsten glanced at Linus. He wore another suit, with a shirt almost matching the color of her red dress.

Cameron nervously looked down at his feet and stepped aside, gesturing for Kirsten to go first. "After you, Stretch."

"The reservation is in my name. If you beat us there," Camille called back to them.

Cameron and Kirsten shared knowing looks, still guessing that the other two would stand them up again.

...

Cameron put his car into park and they walked the block to the restaurant.

They were just a few stores away from the restaurant when both their cell phones went off within a few seconds of each other.

Kirsten was quicker to grab her phone. "Camille," she said. _Sorry, we won't end up making it. Got a bit distracted. Enjoy your dinner with Cameron!_ Well, looks like they guessed correctly, since they were stood up by their friends. She didn't bother responding.

Cameron unlocked his phone a moment later. "Linus here," he said. _Yeah we won't be making it. Camille says man up and make this a date. Enjoy bro!_ He coughed in surprise after reading the text. However he chose to ignore their suggestion.

They walked into the restaurant, and were immediately greeted by the hostess.

"We have a reservation under Camille Engleson, for 7pm," he answered back to the hostess.

"Ah yes, a reservation for two," the hostess confirmed.

"I'm sorry, two?," he inquired. Figured that Camille only actually made the reservation for two.

"Yes, the reservation was made for two. Will there be others joining you?," she inquired.

"Ah, no. Just the two of us," he replied. The hostess led them to their table, leaving them with their menus. "So, I guess this was their plan all along," he directed towards Kirsten.

"Apparently so," she answered.

"Well, at least we have a nice evening out. And I'm still up for game night later," he smirked.

She rolled her eyes at Cameron's insistence for game night.

The waiter stopped at their table and introduced himself, already pouring two glasses of wine. "Good evening, are you ready to order or did you need a minute?," he asked.

"Uh, I'm sorry, we didn't order the wine," Cameron clarified, while Kirsten just looked annoyed.

"It was ordered and paid for when the reservation was made. I can double check on that for you, if you'd like." Cameron nodded, and the waiter excused himself.

They sat in silence, studying the menu. After a minute the waiter returned and placed the bottle of wine on the table. "Sir, I confirmed with the hostess that booked the reservation. The wine was paid for already."

"Thank you. A friend made the reservation for us. We were unaware that they ordered wine for us as well," Cameron replied. He felt the need to clarify since he was almost rude to him, and Kirsten definitely gave the waiter a death stare before.

Having been to this restaurant numerous times, they knew the menu well. They placed their orders and fell into easy conversations about work, their friends, and at Cameron's persistence Doctor Who (which he was confident he would get Kirsten to love, even if she hadn't admitted it yet).

They were almost done with their salads when Cameron's phone chirped with three successive notifications. He checked his phone, all texts from Camille.

 _Enjoy the wine. But on a more serious note, please take this opportunity to make this a date. We all see the way you look at her._

 _We've given you plenty of opportunities over the last month, and I've heard nothing about you two dating. She likes you too..._

 _This is your last chance. If you don't tell her that this is a date by the end of the night, I will._

He winced at that last text, knowing Camille would make good on that promise. Although everything became abundantly clear to him, all the game nights and movie nights that they had bailed on. They were trying to subtly push them to admit their feelings, which apparently Kirsten had as well.

"What's got you thinking so hard?," Kirsten asked, pulling him from his thoughts.

"Oh, Linus just had an idea for a filter we could run to help make things more visible for you, when it's dark or when the sample has their focus elsewhere," he lied. Technically Linus had brought up the idea to him earlier that day, so it was only a white lie. He didn't want to give Kirsten a chance to question it further, so he continued. "So what do you say we try to get Camille and Linus to play Settlers of Catan with us this weekend?"

Kirsten rolled her eyes at him. "They'll probably be in bed all weekend." She had first hand knowledge of all the bedroom activities that went on with her roommate. Unfortunately for her, the walls were thin.

The waiter came by a few minutes later to clear their plates, and inform them that their entrees would be out shortly.

Kirsten's phone went off once. She looked at it, a text from Camille. _Sooooo, how's your first date with Cameron going?_ Thankfully, Kirsten's expression was unreadable to Cameron, because she thought she missed some vital piece of information from tonight. She racked her brain for any indication from Cameron that this was a date, coming up empty handed. Cameron hadn't mentioned anything about this being a date, or at least he never said the word "date."

 _I'm sorry. First date?_ she replied back to Camille.

The response was almost instantaneous. _Come on Kirsten. You both like each other. We've been trying to set you up, but neither of you have taken the hint._ So this was all part of their plan from the beginning.

"Everything alright? You look a little focused," Cameron said.

"Oh, just Camille asking if she can borrow a sweater," she lied and put her phone back in her purse. Best to just ignore her, or she'll keep asking questions. "I'm guessing she already borrowed it, and is only asking me as a formality for when I realize it's missing."

Cameron didn't miss the way her eyebrows furrowed, which she only did when she was really annoyed. He didn't think borrowing a sweater would cause her to be that annoyed with Camille.

The waiter came by with their meals, preventing Cameron from furthering his line of questions.

Kirsten took the interruption as an opportunity to finish her glass of wine. She still couldn't believe that she was on a date with Cameron. Not that it was a far stretch from the truth. They had spent most of their time together, both in and outside of work. She certainly enjoyed spending time with him, and often times showed up at his apartment when they didn't have anything planned.

The one aspect she couldn't figure out was why Cameron never said anything, never asked her out, if he did in fact like her too. She had only dated a handful of guys, but they were always very direct. Then again, she was never really friends with them before dating. That's when it dawned on her. She pulled out her phone to text Camille.

Cameron was asking the waiter about the wine pairing for his dish, even though Kirsten knew that Camille ordered his favorite pinot noir because it paired well with most dishes.

 _Is Cameron afraid that he'll ruin our friendship?_ She sent to Camille.

She was impatiently waiting her reply, while Cameron was still debating a different wine with the waiter.

Her phone chirped, and she read the text quickly. _Took you long enough to figure it out! Of course that's why he hasn't asked you out yet. He doesn't want to lose you._

Kirsten smiled and put her phone away. Losing her should be his last concern. They had inserted each other into every aspect of their lives, that it was almost ridiculous that he could even think that.

"Is the food that good?" His voice interrupted her thoughts.

"Hmm?," she questioned.

"Your smile. I haven't seen you this happy in a- a while." He blushed and looked down at his plate. The last time he had seen her smile like that was about a week ago. It was late, and they had been drinking. He was just telling her some funny story, and she leaned into him while he talked. Later he had convinced himself that he imagined her snuggling against him, as he was fairly intoxicated as well. But he didn't forget the way she smiled, as if she was just content to listen to him talk all night.

She had eaten a few forkfuls of her chicken parmesan, waiting for Cameron to stop staring at his plate and look up.

He finally met her eyes. He smirked at her, before taking a bite of his own entree. She gave him a warm smile before returning to her own meal.

They ate in silence for a bit, and fell into easy conversation again.

The waiter dropped off their check and Cameron insisted on paying.

They were leaving the restaurant before Cameron mustered up the courage. It wasn't all courage, a good portion of it was fear of what Camille might say to Kirsten.

"So uh-" he stalled. "Not too bad, for an accidental first date." He laughed nervously, hoping she wouldn't take him all that seriously. He knew she didn't have any concept of time, but they were halfway down the block and she hadn't said anything. "You know, because it was just the two of us... something Linus said," he elaborated. The longer the silence continued, the more panicked he felt. They finally reached his car. "Nevermind, not important." He tried shrugging off this unease. He reached for his car door, determined to leave the unspoken conversation behind him and never bring it up again.

Her gentle hand on his arm stopped him. His heart was racing. He finally swallowed his pride and turned to look at her, bracing for whatever uncomfortable discussion they would have. When he turned, she was a lot closer in his personal space that he anticipated. She had a curious look in her eyes, that he couldn't quite place.

She really had a great time on her "date" with Cameron, even more so when she found out that Camille and Linus had been plotting to get them together. Apparently everyone knew except for her. She wasn't one to overthink things, but she had been ever since Camille confirmed Cameron's fears earlier. The flash of fear in his eyes is what made her decision for her. She never wanted to see that look on his face again, at least not because of her.

She leaned in and placed a tender kiss on his cheek.

His breathing stopped. He didn't imagine the conversation, or rather lack thereof, ending in this. Sure he imagined her turning him down, saying that she just wanted to be friends, or never mentioning their date again. Never in a million years would he have imagined her warm lips on his cheek.

She backed away so that their faces were only inches apart.

Cameron couldn't rationalize what exactly propelled him forward. He paused briefly to see the ghost of a smile on her lips, before closing the distance between them. He lightly pressed his lips against hers. She eagerly kissed him back, her hands automatically going behind his neck to pull him closer. They broke apart only when the need for air outweighed the need for each other. He leaned in again, this time resting his forehead against hers.

"So, that happened," he said.

She ran her hands down his arms, stopping to intertwine their fingers together. "So, where are we going for our second date?" She smiled widely. "You know, if you want to go on a date on purpose the next time," she teased.

"How about," he paused to kiss the tip of her nose, "we go out tomorrow. That sushi place you like?"

"Sounds perfect. It's a date."

"You're doing it again, you know." She had been smiling non-stop since they got to his car. "The smile, it looks good on you."

She was sure that her cheeks were bright red, now that he called her out on it. "I was thinking about you," she whispered.

His eyebrows furrowed. "What do you mean?" He caressed her hands with his thumbs, gazing down at their joined hands.

She bit the side of her lip. "Earlier, at dinner. I was thinking about you. Camille may have told me that this was a date. And that you were afraid of losing me. Or rather she confirmed my guess."

His movements stopped. "Well, Camille ruined the chance for me to tell you before she did," he sighed. "She may have given me an ultimatum to tell you that this was a date, or she would tell you at the end of the night." He let go of her hands, only to wrap his around her waist.

"So did you plan this date?," she inquired.

"No, I can't take the credit. It was all them." He had a playful smirk on his face before pulling her in closer. "But I wish I had. We should be thanking them right about now." He gave her a quick peck on the lips. "Right?"

"Well I wouldn't say we should thank them right this moment." She kissed him again, leaving him breathless.

A cool breeze wrapped around them, eliciting a shiver from Kirsten. "Why don't I take you home?," he asked. He ran his hands up and down her arms a few times for warmth. He walked her over to the passenger's door, opening it for her.

Once he got in the driver's seat, she asked, "So the date's over?"

"That's usually how it goes Princess."

"I had an alternative proposition." Cameron's eyebrow raise did not go unnoticed, but she continued. "Why don't we go back to your place to play Settlers of Catan. That was the original plan after all."

He smiled and took her hand in his. "That sounds like the perfect ending to the perfect first date."


End file.
